Couple track thief using Airpod location tool

Two German backpackers who had more than $6000 worth of belongings stolen from their campervan in NZ were able to track the suspected thief using their Airpods

Two tourists who had more than $NZ7000 ($A6300) worth of belongings stolen from their campervan in New Zealand were able to track the suspected thief using their Airpods.

Carolin Sommer and Lennart Heiderich, both 36 from Germany, were on a road trip in Rotorua, in the country north island, when five days into their six-week holiday they got mugged.

The backpackers, who were on their way to the south island, claim someone broke into their campervan on Saturday and stole “everything”.

They shared the location of their missing AirPods with police on the same day, which they had tracked with their iPhones, according to the NZ Herald.

A 46-year-old man has since been arrested in relation to the alleged burglary and he is scheduled to reappear in the Rotorua District Court on January 9.

“Some of the stolen property has also been recovered, and our inquiries are ongoing,” a Rotorua police spokesperson confirmed to news.com.au.

German backpackers Carolin Sommer and Lennart Heiderich, both 36, had thousands of dollars worth of belongings stolen from their campervan in Rotorua, New Zealand.

The pair noticed their belongings were missing after returning to their campervan that was parked at the Waipā Forest campground following a mountain bike tour in Whakarewarewa Forest.

They had left for the tour at 10am and returned around noon to find the passenger-side window of their campervan was broken, according to the NZ Herald.

While their passports and keys were luckily in the safe, more than $6000 worth of items were stolen including a Sony DSLR camera, two pairs of AirPods, prescription glasses, power banks, headlamps and “expensive” mountain bike parts and gear.

They called the police to report the theft, uploading images and details of the incident to a provided link, but claim nothing was done.

“They said they would only come if the perpetrators were still there or we had seen them,” Ms Sommer said.

They returned from a bike ride tour on Saturday afternoon to find their campervan window smashed.

The 36-year-old, Sommer, who said she was a forensics expert who worked with police in Germany, said their stolen AirPods were connected to their iPhones, so the couple “tracked” the alleged thief to Eason St.

“This works because other people who have iPhones, when they pass by our AirPods, the data is shared with Apple. So, you can track them down – it’s kind of like GPS but with Apple devices,” she told the publication.

Another couple at the campground went with Mr Heiderich to Eason Street where they claim to have spotted a man wearing Ms Sommer’s shirt and carrying their bag with all their belongings.

Some of the stolen items included Sony DSLR camera, two pairs of AirPods, prescription glasses and bike gear.

Mr Heiderich took a photo of the suspected thief and called police to inform them there was a “dangerous guy” with their things, but claim they still refused to come.

The pair just continued to track their Airpods, spotting the suspected thief again the following day.

She told the NZ Herald she believed police viewed their report as “not important enough”.

However, in a statement issued on Wednesday, Rotorua police said they were “actively undertaking” inquiries to identify those involved and recover stolen property following a report of a campervan that was broken into and items stolen from inside on Saturday.

“A number of reports with further information have been made by the victims in this incident which are assisting in our investigation,” a spokesperson said.

“Police always work hard to investigate reports of criminal activity; however, we cannot be everywhere all the time and calls for service have to be prioritised. Incidents where there is potential for an immediate risk to life are our first priority.”

The spokesperson said they understand that this offending can have real impacts on victims, and acknowledge it can be distressing to have your vehicle broken into, especially when that vehicle is being used as your accommodation.

“[And] and we encourage anyone who is victim of this offending to report it to Police as soon as possible with as much information as possible.”

A 46-year-old man has been charged and Ms Sommer said they were “happy that something happened and has been done”.